The Blog that was supposed to start all this!

I think I’ve taken on too much!!

One part time job (19 hours) two party plan businesses ( Phoenix and Virgin Wine tastings ), PTA treasurer and just the ordinary <cough> ness of being a single mum of 4 ( fairly lazy!) kids without any family support ( Both mum and dad have gone now )

I spend half of each day completely excited about the opportunities I’ve found ( I mean my Virgin Wine Fabulous Tastings business which is growing WHOOP) and developing ideas.

I spend another half so stressed and not remembering what I am supposed to be doing that I forget to do it.. After a lovely relaxed (ish) week off for half term I think its the PTA stuff that does that to me!)!

I spend another portion running round like a headless chicken getting nothing done.

Another portion of the day actually getting stuff done ( rarely housework though!!)

Too little but at least some of my day talking to my children, spending a little me time with them and making their tea!

…and then at the end.. I remember everything I’ve forgotten to do that day and promise myself that I will Definitely do it tomorrow!

And for the clever ones amongst you..yes that adds up to more than a day!

A few weeks ago I was trying to work out exactly how I could get on the top of the search engines for all my businesses.  I couldn’t even top the searches for lizloz.co.uk so how on earth was i going to do it.

I’ve provided websites to small businesses in the past and spent time doing search engine optimisation but I’m very rusty and things move on, the search engines prioritise differently and there wasn’t really social media to deal with when I was doing it either.

So i was very un optimisitc about getting on any pages of google for some time and certainly not until I’d got some recipricol links and a few more posts.

then i looked again today and WHOOP!

top page for ;

phoenix cards

phoenix trading

wine tasting

virgin wine tasting

wikaniko

and lizloz

Can’t believe it!!  I did the bare basics, probably more than most laymen know I suppose, but it still fairly impressive I think.  haven’t got any recipricol links (yet!), just utilised the old fashioned tags.

Its clear that many sites, most owned by reasonable sized businesses, don’t really consider SE placement when they are setting an online presence info up.  I think a lot of web developers just simply don’t bother or know enough about SEO ( search engine optimisation) but they really should.

Having said that.. I’m glad for my sake certain ones don’t

…a virgin wine advisor!

I look back over last few weeks and think, bloody hell!!  I saw a business I knew nothing about ( except I love red wine!) and thought… I can do that!  I will do that.. and now I am doing that!  And its just occurred to me that it was quite brave really, or maybe just stupid!  Regardless of which, it was the right decision!

Its a party plan that involves talking, I’m good at talking, VERY good!  However my usual party plan, Phoenix cards, doesn’t really need any introduction or continual interaction with the whole audience, theres no centre of attention and no pressure for knowledge.

Not quite the same with wine!   However I’ve gone from not knowing a chardonney from a chablis ( actually still don’t because I don’t like whites!) to having a bit of knowledge.  I’m no buff but last Saturday, after reading a book and using the information virgin sent me, I stood up and entertained and even educated 14 ladies whilst they tasted the wine! They had a great time, I had a great time, and they bought a tonne of wine too!

Quite a difference from the week before at my own tiny little launch where Jess from Virgin Wine came to train me and showed me (just by talking) how little homework I’d done.  By my bit of the evening I was a gibbering wreck and wooden as hell, and asking teach to clarify every little detail!  “is it a white one miss!”

sigh

BUT today.. I recruited someone!!  Karen was at the tasting on Saturday and saw the same potential as I had.   Really hope together we can get it out there

I am just SOOOOOOOO excited… Even contemplating giving up my Phoenix cards to concentrate on it.  Something I said I would never do as I’ve been a Phoenix trader for 7 years now and absolutely love the product and everything about the company and its ethos.  However I think Virgin Wine has the potential to be my real job, if I put the effort in I think I can earn a reasonable living from it.  Its got such huge potential!

Not a tremendously insightful post.. just wanted to be giddy with someone

If you want to book a tasting get in touch, I’m happy to cover all of the north of England at the moment so that I can get out there and not only get new customers, but recruit more advisors. This business needs to get out there and the only way its going to do that is by more advisors and I want them all on my team

I saw this article today

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/bbc/9198428/Staff-at-BBC-Salford-get-minders-after-being-shot-at-with-air-rifles.html

Now I don’t condone all the bits and pieces of crime thats occurring however I just HAD to laugh a little!

Me and the kids and some friends visited the Imperial War Museum last week which is close to Media City and we passed through the place on our way to the tram station.

It is an odd place, a huge massive telly up in the air, pointing at the BBC buildings themselves and literally NO ONE was around except us but the telly was on with the BBC News 24. Maybe its just there to amuse people in the offices around What a waste of energy, resources, un eco friendly and who exactly was it for? Its not a time for excess, especially in areas where people are suffering the effects of this recession.  It just shows how out of touch the BBC are.

Excessive, unnecessary and a waste of OUR license fee!

But the whole place had an alien feel to it too, like someone had plonked it in the wrong place, was so out of keeping. And so spick and span and perfectly planned! Now I know Manchester wants to regenerate areas and I know we need the business but none of it sat comfortably with me, in fact I commented to the kids and friends, “I wonder if there’s a fence to keep the natives ( I include myself in that!!) out”.

So this article reminded me of that!

Not sure what they think a burly guard will do to stop a bullet/pellet! I suppose they can help with the petty crime bits but really… guards? Wish we could all afford them eh? Oh yeah we all do pay don’t we… but for them , not us!

Interesting that they think being duped on the doorstep is a northern thing, and though I might have read it wrong, something to do with being from MC, I thought it was their own stupidity myself!

I definitely got the feeling of them and us when I was there and clearly this article suggest the BBC relocations think so too!

My friend was in the park the other day walking her 3 dogs, 2 of them 4 month old bouncy puppies! Someone came towards them and encouraged them and fed them, without asking, sausage rolls! The puppies being puppies got a bit excited and accidentally caught the ladies finger with its teeth. Something that all dog owners know can happen with pups. What my friend got then was a tirade of abuse about the sort of person she was and how she gave decent dog owners a bad name. Meanwhile the child of these people was bounding around with another sausage roll encouraging the puppies to jump even more! What the point of this is is that this person, who was clearly in the wrong, during their rant stated, “WE are from Media City and have just moved here…. ”

..and to me that statement sums it all up! Why on Earth would anyone say that? Even in normal discussion never mind a row with a stranger! Its because they believe they are important , its a pompous and self important statement, and I haven’t seen any evidence to suggest its not the  corporative veiwpoint too!

Our area is supposedly a “designated” relocation area for the BBC. Which with 2 houses to sell makes me happy! However there was an offer on my mums house from some BBC relocation people. They had the nerve to knock 70 grand off the asking price, cos they “wanted to extend and thats how much it costs”. Now we are in a time of recession and we all know the game, knock a few thou off… maye 20 thou.. but 70? Taking into account the generous relocation package from the BBC.. “official” details here  and article here, and also news items suggesting very large one off payments too, I just thought they were taking the very greedy piss myself!

I was quite keen on the BBC coming here, I thought and I still do think that it will help the region enormously but even me, miles away from the media city and with it only touching my life a little so far, is beginning to resent all of them and their attitude and the excess that they gleefully represent at a time when we are all suffering. What does “they” encompass? The BBC corporation definitely, but also the attitude of some of their employees which my friends and I have seen in person and we can see so clearly in this article. Its no wonder really that local petty criminals pick on them and maybe they should take stock of that and stop blaming the northerners?

It might help if the BBC had become a major employer in the area as promised but it appears that they are choosing to relocate rather than bring in local people adding I guess more fuel to the fire! See this article for information about this see  this article and another interesting one here too.

And yes I know!! I’m trying not to tar all BBC employees with the same brush! Certainly our existing BBC bunch are fine,  I know a few! And I’m sure some of the southerners are lovely, but some are clearly not and the BBC itself is definitely not!

Or maybe they’re all just southern jessies

However, after saying all that..they are all very welcome to buy Phoenix cards , Wikaniko products or book a wine tasting with me

and i waste so much tme online.. so why on earth dont i just write it all down here??

As you can see 2 years down hte line i still havent blogged!

main one.. im the laziest procrastinator n the planet..

2 i worry if my kids will ever read this.. well if i blog i have to be honest dont i? What if their idiot father finds out, or his relatives, or his mates? etc etc etc

3.. im sure theres more reasons than this!! I think i panic alot that theres so much i need to do.. that i waste time worrying aboout doiongit instead of doing it therefore wasting more time and not getting it done!

4.  Well im a bit concerned that my mad typing and hte need to get it down here will result in longer time spent correcting the spellings!  I may , in order to get stuff done here, ignore spellings( or i like to explain that it is my fingers dont work as well as my brain..so i can spell..perfectly.. i just type appallingly!  ) but will you let me get away with it i wonder?  :D

Not really enough reasons to have taken so long…. I ve decided i want to write a book eventually so i think i really need to get this sorted.. so heres to not waiting another year or 2 for a post!

I didnt blog.. i havent blogged// i do have a new computer but i stil dotn use apostrophes.. a new habit dies hard

I didnt sell you cards.. but i will..eventually..

I didnt get you to share my experiences training and going to the Saghara for CAFT.. i might.. if i ever get time.. i ll certainly post some pics..

and i didnt share the training experiences for much harder walk for CAFT in april.. I cant share the photos cos i didnt have time to take any.. but i might evntually blog it.. you never know stranger things have happened!

I didnt share losing my MUM

and i didnt share falling in hate with my childrens dad

and i didnt share my divorce…

I will share everything else though..eventually…

I m going to do a blog! It seems the rest of the world I m interested in does them so i reckon i should too.

its going to have no apostrophes until I get my key board fixed ( i spilt my red wine on it a year ago.. I know.. what a waste!)

Its going to ramble…

its going to try and sell you cards..cos I ve got a tonne I need to get rid of and they are BLOODY gorgeous! Its going to try and recruit a few new traders from across the globe into my Phoenix Trading business too ..cos I love doing it so you will too..

Its going to express my frustration and occasional lonliness at being in most ways a single mum of 4 children.. and its going to show you the wonders, joys and constant irritation of having 4 kids !!

..but most of all for the next 6 months Im going to talk about how I m preparing and how I m fundraising for my charity walk, supporting a wonderful place called Adventure Farm Trust,  that  Ive been roped and bullied into by my Twitter Family and hopefully for which I ll be eternally grateful to them for ( does that make sense? Tough if it doesnt cos I m sure you get the gist !!)

Hope you like it… hope on occasion you love it.. and hope you feel a sudden unavoidable urge to sp0nsor me, buy my cards or offer to babysit every night for a month…or all 3 !!

xxx